Ep. 74 with Jessica Swenson | Founder, SALT - Reclaiming Your Hue: A Podcast for Women Rediscovering Themselves in Motherhood & Entrepreneurship

Episode Transcript
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SPEAKER_03 (00:10):
Welcome everybody to Reclaiming Your Hue, where we
are dedicated to empoweringwomen to embrace and amplify
their inherent brilliance.
Our mission is to inspiremothers and entrepreneurs to
unlock their full potential andradiate their true selves.
I'm your host, Kelly Kirk, andeach week my goal is to bring to

(00:30):
you glorious guests as well assolo episodes.
So let's dive in.
Good morning, Jess.

SPEAKER_00 (00:36):
Good morning.

SPEAKER_03 (00:37):
How are you?
I'm good.

SPEAKER_00 (00:39):
I'm a little nervous, but excited.

SPEAKER_03 (00:42):
Let me put you at ease.
We've got the calming lavenderscent of a candle over here.
It's beautiful.
I love it.
All right.
I am thrilled to have you here.
I um have to say, first andforemost, so appreciative of who
connected us.

(01:04):
Same.
And so I would love for you toshare.
This is how we kick everythingoff for this podcast is how it
is that we got connected.
So would you share that with thelisteners?

SPEAKER_00 (01:14):
Yeah, of course.
So we got connected throughMonica Staley.
She was a mom at my kids'school.
So our kids became friendsthrough their class.
And, you know, she was doingsomething similar that I was
doing.
And she was uh featured on theOLG newsletter, which I rarely

(01:35):
open.
Happened to open it, uh, sawher, was able to connect with
her through the event, and thenshe brought me to you.

SPEAKER_03 (01:42):
So incredible.
And Monica and I, I know that wespoke about this when we grabbed
coffee, and I was soappreciative of her connection
and us having our sit-downconversation as well.
Monica and I go way back, evenbefore she had kids, before I
had kids, and our likeconnection point at that point

(02:05):
was through BI, which is anetworking group.
And it was through her umnetwork marketing company,
Isogenics.
Yeah.
That's amazing.
My how the tides have changedstill in all of that.
But then, you know, I think ourpaths crossed again when I saw

(02:28):
that she had wrote a book, and Iwas so inspired by the
foundation of that book.
Agreed.
And then the fact that she evenlike wrote a book.
I'm like, that's reallyimpressive.
Like, let's get together.
I would love to hear more aboutthis.
Also, I'm starting a podcast.
Do you want to be on it?
She was like, wow, I wasn'tanticipating that, but yes, of

(02:52):
course, I would love that.
So it's interesting to just seehow this connection here ties to
this connection here.
Yeah.
And what's really cool, and I'dlove for you to share here in
just a moment what the name ofyour business is because there
we have another mutualconnection too with Erica

(03:13):
Dvorak.
Yes.
And you guys have some funthings coming down the pipe here
with collaborations.
So let's start off with sharingwith the listeners what it is
that you have um going foryourself in business.

SPEAKER_00 (03:25):
Okay.
So I recently launched a brandcalled Salt.
Um, it was launched in March ofthis year on my 40th birthday.
Woo! 40 club.
I mean 30.
Yeah.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
I don't want to age myself here,but a milestone birthday for
sure.
And in the beginning of theyear, I was longing to just do

(03:46):
more purposeful work.
And God led me to bring faithand fitness together and build
community around that.
Um, in the beginning of theyear, I was feeling a little bit
lost and just continued to prayfor him to guide me and ask him,
you know, what did he bring meto this earth to do?

(04:07):
And it was aligning my passionswith faith, fitness, and
community.
Um, and the brand was inspiredby a Bible verse, Luke chapter
14, 34.
And it just talks about um if welose our saltiness, how can we
be made salty again?
And just talking about how saltpreserves the goodness in food,

(04:29):
and we are called on this earthto preserve God's goodness.
And so that just that verse justspoke to me in the next 48
hours.
I just started developing thebrand, not really sure where it
was gonna lead me.
Yeah, but since it's led me topop-up faith and fitness events,
it's so cool.

SPEAKER_03 (04:51):
And it's what I love about it too is I'm with you in
regards to like this the idea ofmoving your body and how you
incorporate the good word intomovement as well.
It's pretty, it's prettyamazing.
So we're gonna take a step backin time though.
We're gonna we're gonna buildthe listeners up to this point

(05:14):
that we're talking about rightnow.
Um, because there's other partsto the story that lead to what
you're talking about right now.
Definitely.
So you probably already like thelisteners are probably reading
between between the lines, butcan you just share and sort of
definitively state that, youknow, what came first for you?

(05:36):
Was it motherhood or was itentrepreneurship?
It was definitely motherhood.

SPEAKER_00 (05:40):
I never expected to be doing this.
Yeah.
Um, so I have three kids, seven,six, and three.
And I still, which is probablyunique to a lot of the guests
that you've had on here, I stillhave a full-time job in the
corporate setting.
It's not actually.

SPEAKER_03 (05:58):
There are, um, I mean, I've had such a wide range
of individuals who have been onthe podcast, and I sort of pride
myself in this, in having everany what anyone from call it
zero startup to 10, 15, 20 plusyears in business, or even
retired for that matter.
So it's like really everythingacross the board because no

(06:23):
matter where you're at in theentrepreneurial journey, you can
relate to this beginning of it.

SPEAKER_00 (06:28):
Yes.
Well, that's amazing.
And I love that other people aredoing this as well.
Yeah.
Um, because I started out, youknow, at motherhood wanting to
climb that corporate ladder.
This is with like my first childstill living that life.
Um and with my second child,that was at the beginning of

(06:50):
COVID.
I mean, it was 2019, so it wasright before.
Yeah.
But when COVID hit, that waswhen that was a turning point
for me.

SPEAKER_03 (06:59):
Okay.

SPEAKER_00 (06:59):
Tell me more about that.
I just wanted more.
I I, you know, while it was areally hard time to go through,
I saw it as a blessing for ourfamily.
We really just changed our ways.
Uh, we spent more time together.
Yes, it was stressful at timestrying to juggle work and taking
care of the kids.

(07:20):
Um I'm sure you can relate.
100%.
Um, but it, you know, we startedcooking together and having
meals together, and we are justspending way more time with the
kids, and it just makes yourealize how much time away from
them you spend when you'reworking, you know, eight to five
and then picking the kids up at5 30.
I mean, thinking back, that I Iwant nothing to do with that

(07:42):
life.
Yeah.
So we made a shift.
I mean, I'm still workingfull-time, but I'm not going
into the office like I used to.
I go in once a week, and it justmade me re-prioritize what is
important.
And I had no interest inclimbing the corporate ladder
anymore.
It's I'm so thankful to have afull-time job that provides for

(08:03):
my family.
However, the industry that I'vebeen in for the past decade is
just it's just not fulfillingfor me.
Sure.
Even just saying the name, thepharmacy benefit management
industry is like, all right.

SPEAKER_03 (08:18):
Okay, not the most exciting thing.
Yeah, well, and it's there's alot of controversy too that's
happening in the health care,healthcare system, the
pharmaceutical avenue as well.
And so I'm sure that you youfeel some of that impact off off

(08:39):
air.
You were sharing with me thatyou're an empathetic person and
you carry some of that stuff.
And so I'm sure it's tough,which you know, you speak to
exactly that shift that happensfor so many women who have been
on the podcast.
It's I don't either I'm notaligned anymore with the mission

(09:04):
and the vision of the careerpath that I'm with, or it's the
company that I'm that I I oncefelt so aligned with, but maybe
there's been some changes inleadership or you know, even top
above the leadership that's kindof trickled down.
There's there's alwayssomething.
Yeah.
There's just always something.

(09:24):
And God bless the the corporateenvironments because uh for the
most part, they're all justthey're all really trying to do
it the best way that they knowhow to within the constraints
that they have.
Yep.

SPEAKER_00 (09:38):
So and that alignment is what I was missing
too.
It's just, and it was a it's avery large company.
You don't have that connectionwith you know that you had going
into the office.
You had your work friends andhappy hours and all that, and
that just like was gone afterCOVID.
Yeah.
And I mean, I miss it, but Ialso enjoy the the family time,

(10:01):
and that's what's important tome now.

SPEAKER_03 (10:03):
Yeah.
So what I want to dive into isthe idea of what harmonization
looks like for you in thisparticular season of having the
the the quote unquote nine tofive, right?
And then also diving intoentrepreneurship as well.

SPEAKER_00 (10:24):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 (10:24):
And and what the the um the trade-offs are
potentially, the the tipping ofthe scales, um, what talk us as
the listeners and myself throughwhat that has looked like for
you so far.

SPEAKER_00 (10:42):
So it's been tricky.
Um, I will say one of the mostimportant things I do is block
my calendar.
Um, and I, you know, I don'thave set hours for either thing
for salt or for my corporatejob.
I just, you know, try to fill inthe gaps, but I prioritize

(11:03):
what's important and family'simportant.
So God has called me to thisspace, but it's also I know He
doesn't want me to overextendand not be present in our home.

SPEAKER_03 (11:15):
Okay.
Is this innately a trait thatyou've sort of taken from being
in that corporate setting oreven like past that?
Is it always something that youyou've carried through?
Is no?

SPEAKER_00 (11:29):
I have not been good about this, but I've been
praying and asking God for helpin this area because it's it is
so important, and my kids areeverything to me, and I need to
be the best mom that I can athome, and that's that is my
number one ultimately.

(11:49):
So, yes, it's not easy.
I do the best that I can, andI'm not perfect, but I am so
intentional with my time.
So, calendar blocks with salt, Ido weekly post, you know, so I'm
not like posting every day, likeI don't want to overextend
myself in that area.
Um I've developed someconsistency with what I'm

(12:13):
sharing on salt, and so thatmakes things a little bit easier
and not trying to like createsomething new every time.
So just small little um changeshave been impactful with trying
to juggle it all.

SPEAKER_03 (12:28):
It's interesting.
I I think of the word like beingdisciplined, like there's a lot
of discipline in how you aremoving through and forward with
how you're approachingentrepreneurship, which is
amazing, right?
And a lot of entrepreneursunderstand and sometimes have to

(12:52):
hit really bumpy roads and inorder to understand, like, okay,
let's go backwards, take a lookat how the calendar has looked.
Is my calendar guiding me?
Or am I being like, have I hadthe discipline to go, nope, this
is what's in my calendar.
I'm sticking to it.

(13:14):
And because this phone call iscoming in, doesn't mean I have
to answer it right now,depending on the circumstance,
right?
Yeah, depending on thecircumstance.
But if I've time blocked thatthis is my my dedicated devoted
time to salt, or this is mydedicated devoted time to what
you do from your for your nineto five, that's how it is.

(13:37):
And I I do think and can speakto it personally too, like that
wasn't always the case for me.
I could be really much better atlike doing the discipline of
time block, but when I do thetime block, it's interesting the
magic that happens.

SPEAKER_00 (13:55):
Exactly.
It's so impactful.
And I used to, I mean, I used tomake myself available at all all
hours for my corporate job.
I mean, I was always online, Ihad a cell phone, always
connected, and it's justestablishing those boundaries
are so important, but you haveto do it in advance.
So, like, yeah, prepare for theweek that way.

SPEAKER_03 (14:16):
When did you feel like that shift happened for
you?
Was it was it before having kidsor was it after having kids?

SPEAKER_00 (14:25):
I would say after and probably with my third
child.
I think my third child changedme the most.

SPEAKER_03 (14:31):
Okay, tell me more about that.
And can you just share with thelisteners how old your kiddos
are?

SPEAKER_00 (14:37):
Yes.
So my oldest is seven, and thenI have a six-year-old, they're
16 months apart, and then I havea three-year-old.
And so with the first kid, I waskind of trying to maintain my
previous lifestyle, you know,going out, even taking him with
us, which is like, I don't know.
Yeah, I just shake my head atthat now.

SPEAKER_03 (14:57):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 (14:57):
Second kid tried to do that same thing, but I was
just way overextending myself,and I was kind of realizing it,
but not being like really goodabout changing anything.
Sure.
And then the third kid justcompletely changed me.
Even with like, I would clean upafter like the kids, you know,
played.

(15:18):
Yeah.
And then the room would be messyagain like half an hour later.
Now I just wait till the end ofthe day.
It's like live stress.

unknown (15:25):
I can't.

SPEAKER_00 (15:26):
I have three kids to clean up after.
This is too much.

SPEAKER_03 (15:30):
I literally could learn so much from you because
I've got three kids that arerunning around this house now,
like legitimately running aroundthis house.
And I still catch myself doingthis where I'm cleaning up after
Maddie has like made the roomher room.
Like, it's not our room, it'sher room that is not even her

(15:51):
room, it's the living room.
And I'm like, oh my gosh, butthat's that's a good practice.

SPEAKER_00 (15:57):
Yeah.
Small things like that that havechanged with my third, and it's
like, why take this on?
You know, it's just adding moretime away from the kids and
adding more stress, like, justwait till the end of the day,
everything's gonna be fine.

SPEAKER_03 (16:13):
Yeah, okay.
So um, your kiddos, three kiddosrunning all over the place.
And um, are there other examplesthat you wanted to speak to for
how your third changed you?
Cause it sounds like it was apretty impactful like shift.

SPEAKER_00 (16:33):
Yeah, I I mean she brought me closer to God too,
and I in I I don't know how, butshe was the one of the reasons.
Um and I think it's you know, Imet Monica through our school.
I met a lot of other faith-basedmoms through our school from
different uh faith backgroundsand have done Bible studies with

(16:55):
them, and just like I think, youknow, connecting with other moms
through our three children havebeen impactful in my faith life
as well.

SPEAKER_03 (17:07):
I couldn't agree more, yeah, by the way.
It was it, I mean, it wasn't forme, my my circumstance is a
little bit different.
I've got three, but I have onebiological, right?
And it it's when when thathappened is when that shift for
leaning more into faith just itit it like changed completely.

(17:32):
Like it was changing even when Iwas pregnant.
There was just something thatwas stirring inside of me that
was like I was being called tolean more into my faith and not
be shy about leaning into myfaith.
It's taken time.
Yeah, it has, and we werespeaking to this even you know
off air before hitting record.
It's just like with the eventsof the world, it's like we we

(17:58):
have two choices.
We could lean further away fromour faith because uh standing in
that means that we wepotentially see an outcome
that's not great, or we go, thisis this is who I am, right?
And so I think that nothing likehaving children to kind of help

(18:19):
spark that in you and justunderstand that there's there's
truly something deeper, there'sa deeper meaning to life.
Yeah, how could we not thinkthat there's one maker that's
sort of in charge of all of thatat the helm?

SPEAKER_00 (18:34):
And recently I've become more vocal about it too.
I mean, obviously through salt.
Um, but I was very private in myfaith life because I had the
Catholic upbringing, and that'skind of how majority of
Catholics are.
I mean, we don't douncomfortable things like this,
like pray out loud in front ofpeople or help others grow in

(18:57):
their faith um vocally.
I feel like it's a very privatething in the Catholic faith.
And so I wanted I saw morepeople in my community doing
this, and it's helped me grow inmy faith, and I want to help
others as well.

SPEAKER_03 (19:12):
Yeah, I love it.
I love it so much.
I so something that I am reallycurious about is you are really
in like the the throes ofstartup for your business, yes,
while also harmonizing that in adifferent way with your

(19:33):
corporate position as well.
What are some of the challengesthat you have encountered thus
far being so early in the earlystages of entrepreneurship?

SPEAKER_00 (19:46):
So there's been a lot of unforeseen things.
I mean, most of it's beenpositive, but there's I mean,
there's just so many growing andlearning experiences through it
all.
I've been in marketing for over18 years, but I've worked in
marketing in a corporate settingin healthcare.

(20:08):
So there's a lot that I haven'tdone.
And to start my own thing, Imean, I've never worked on
social media, you know, brandingand creative, and it's helped me
grow in so many um differentfacets and marketing, but also
um I'm a very passionate person.

(20:29):
So as I was talking aboutbefore, how I know God doesn't
want me to overextend myself inthis space, it's really hard for
me because I see there's so muchopportunity at all the churches
that I could, you know, callupon or gyms.
And it's hard for me to liketake that back and um limit it

(20:50):
to a certain number I'mtargeting quarterly just to keep
it manageable.
But I'm hoping further down theroad I'm able to solely focus on
this.

SPEAKER_03 (21:03):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
You literally like that was oneof my questions.
It wasn't gonna be my next one,but let's go here.
Let's talk about it if you're ifyou're open to doing that.
Yeah, which you know, like let'stalk through what would need to
be true for you to cut the cord.

SPEAKER_00 (21:23):
So one thing that I haven't brought up is my husband
launched his own company end oflast year.
Oh, which also inspired me.

SPEAKER_03 (21:34):
Oh, I love this.
Okay, keep going.

SPEAKER_00 (21:37):
So, you know, for this past year I've been the
sole provider as he fuels, youknow, the money in his business
and into his business.
And once we are at a more stableuh spot financially, and it is
part of our plans for me to peelback.
Okay.
Um, hopefully in the nearestterm, like within the next three

(22:01):
years.
Um, and then I can focus on saltas much or as little as I want
to, but I again I'm a passionateperson, so I feel like I have
big dreams for salt.

SPEAKER_03 (22:13):
I just I love the mission of it, Jess.
And I love the like the wholewhat backs it, right?
Biblically speaking, I just loveit.
Um, and you are about to enterinto such a fun season of life.
It's challenging, I'll tell you,speaking from being in not only

(22:36):
business with my husband, who'salso an entrepreneur, but but
literally when you cut the cord,you are leaning into your faith
so much more and trusting God'sprocess for you.
And it is both exhilarating andterrifying all in one fell
swoop.

(22:57):
But in the end, and I I'm sureyou have some semblance of
understanding of this, like Godwill provide, yeah, no matter
what.
So and that is such a He doesn'twant you to be stupid either,
yeah.
Like, don't quit the nine tofive when that's the primary,
quite yet.

SPEAKER_00 (23:17):
Exactly.
I and that has been the wholetheme of like trusting God since
uh my husband Ben started hisown company.
We both have trusted God withthis whole process, and yes,
it's scary just taking in onepaycheck when we have three
young kids, like, but we youknow trusted God and He has
provided.
Yes, we went through stressfultimes, but it was manageable.

(23:41):
So um we feel very grateful.

SPEAKER_03 (23:43):
Remind me what it is that your husband we're just
gonna highlight this for a briefsecond and then come back to
everything with Jess.
Yeah, but I am curious what itis that he is doing with his
business.

SPEAKER_00 (23:55):
So he they manufacture balconies for
multifamily complexes across theUS.

SPEAKER_03 (24:00):
That's right.
Thank you.
I needed the friendly reminder,and it's funny because I
remember when we spoke to this,I knew exactly what you were
talking about.
What and you were like, not alot of people understand the
concept of what this looks like.

SPEAKER_00 (24:12):
Yeah, I mean, he's been in just like niche
industries.
Yeah.
I mean, he came from theelevator industry, which is just
I didn't know anybody thatworked in that industry.

SPEAKER_03 (24:22):
Yes, that's niche.
And that I I came from propertymanagement.
Like I I had a a time periodwhen I was in the sales and
marketing side of propertymanagement, and you know, the
the uh property manager wasdealing left and right with the
elevator people, the elevatorvendor.
So yeah, I mean it's it'sinteresting to have some of

(24:45):
those ties, but all right,harmonizing happens in so many
different ways, and I would loveto hear a little bit more,
actually a lot a bit more, aboutwhat this has looked like having
three young children under 10running around, toting around,

(25:05):
and and then starting a businesstoo.
And what are what are some ofthe insights and like peaks and
valleys that you can share withthe listeners that could be
super insightful for them?

SPEAKER_00 (25:19):
Yeah, I think bringing the kids into the
process as much as you can is souh impactful and fulfilling.
Um, that's been one of thehighlights for me.
Um just to show them that theycan, you know, they can do
whatever they want, really.
Um and you know, just showingthem that faith is very

(25:45):
important and providing thatfoundation for them, um, helping
them want to learn about theirfaith and grow in their faith as
well, and we're doing ittogether as a family.
Um so yeah, I think bringing thekids into it as much as you can,
but then also again, I'm apassionate person, so I will

(26:05):
once I like dive into the saltstuff, I can spend hours um just
you know, like diving into theBible, creating my salty
Wednesday post.
Like, I can spend a lot of timeand I want to make sure that I'm
not taking away from the kids'time during that process.

(26:26):
So I bring them into it as muchas possible.
And I say if I would say ifyou're starting your own
business and you can bring yourkids into it, do that.
Yeah.
Can you give examples of how youwere doing that?
Yeah, so my uh son, he when Ifirst launched, he wanted to
design salt football gloves.
So for him and his friends.

(26:47):
Yeah.
So he like wrote down all thethings, like all the salt gear
that he wants to create.
I have yet to create it, but itis on my list.
Um, and then hopefully we'll dosome sort of kid pop-up event as
well.
That's incredible.

SPEAKER_03 (27:01):
Okay, so I would love to know.
Maybe you've thought throughthis.
Maybe I'm putting you on thespot right now.
Have you thought about like whatthat could look like for the
kids?
A little bit.

SPEAKER_00 (27:14):
Um, so what really pops in my mind instantly is a
5k.
Mmm.
Okay.
So I used to be a runner.
I mean, I wasn't very good, butthat was my passion at the time.

SPEAKER_03 (27:27):
The fact that you were even doing it, like, I I
give so much like applause toindividuals like Monica's in
this category right now.
She is she is running her littleheart out right now for a half
marathon.
And I'm like, why?
But also, I'm really proud ofyou because you've got to

(27:50):
probably have some really strongknees and really good mental
mindset to be able to step intothat and step out of it and then
step back into it.
That's incredible.

SPEAKER_00 (28:01):
There is nothing better than a runner's high.
Like, after you run, thatfeeling you can't really, I
can't.

SPEAKER_03 (28:09):
No, it's I really can't.
Like, I think every single timeI've ever done a 5k, I've been
like, thank god that's done.
Yeah.
So I might be the anomaly.
I mean, it's like a lot ofpeople like the outlier, like in
that mean, medium, and rush.
Like, I'm the outlier.
I am.
I'm totally throwing it all off.

SPEAKER_00 (28:25):
But hey, it could be a 5k walk too.
And that's probably what itwould be with kids.
Um, I'm on board.
I'm on board for it.
That would be so fun.
So that's bring the kids along.
Maybe 2026.
We'll see.
But it's so incredible.

SPEAKER_03 (28:40):
All right.
So, can you give insight to uhwhat salt movement looks like?
What are some of the pop-ups umthat you do?
How are you um promoting it?
Like, let's talk about some ofthe the nitty-gritty of the
business side of this for you.

SPEAKER_00 (28:59):
Yeah, so when I launched SALT, I was in a book
club at my kids' school with Ithink there was like six other
moms, and one of the ladies wholed it was um on the marketing
team at the school, and she saidthat she was looking to do like
a fitness or a yoga event at theschool, and it was it was right

(29:23):
when I launched our assault, andI had no idea what I was gonna
do with it.
And I mean, we had our firstevent.
There were, I think, 16 momsthat attended.
It was like the same day as thegala, and there was a lot of
things going on at the time, butit was a good turnout, and uh,

(29:43):
we did like a hybrid yogastrength class.
Um, and I was connected to thefitness instructor through my
old roommate, and so you know,the moms at the school connected
with her very well, and she'sgonna lead.
Quarterly events at the schoolnow.
That's incredible.

(30:03):
So that's what that looks likeat the school.
But then, you know, connectingwith Monica, she led our first
yoga event in Excelsior.
Yeah.
And that was amazing.
Truly an amazing experience thatwas impactful to those that
attended as well as those thatwere just in the area.
Yeah.
Um, so that was amazing.
We've had a serving event atFeed My Starving Children.

(30:27):
Okay.
So, like moving our bodies andserving together.
That was um a special event aswell.
We did a walk at the Mombus 5K,which is where I connected with
Erica.

SPEAKER_03 (30:39):
Oh.
Yeah, nice.
Is that the event that's hostedat Hutton House?
Yes.
Okay.
Somebody else was telling meabout this, and I was just like,
okay, this is like a no-brainerthat I need to be at that.
You do.
When the next one happens, like,I've got to be there.

SPEAKER_00 (30:57):
I believe it's it's in May, early May, usually, and
I highly recommend, which is whyI promoted it as a salt event as
well.
Um, we all wore salt t-shirtsand walked together and start
opened in prayer.
Um, and I had learned aboutErica through your podcast.

SPEAKER_03 (31:16):
Really?

SPEAKER_00 (31:17):
Um, because Monica had sent me your podcast, and
then I saw that she wasexhibiting.
And so we connected, and thennow we're collaborating on the
next event into this month.

SPEAKER_03 (31:27):
And you can, I was just gonna say you can speak to
it by the time the episodedrops.
That event will have alreadyhappened, unfortunately.
But can you share a little bitabout what that's gonna look
like too, just so our listenerscan understand what they're
missing out on?

SPEAKER_00 (31:40):
Yeah.
Um, we were fortunate to stumbleupon a unique venue of room and
board in Edyna.
And I love it too.

SPEAKER_03 (31:49):
I was like, wow, that's gonna be incredible.
I'm really working my darndestto get there, by the way.

SPEAKER_00 (31:55):
I would love to have you.
I hope you can make it.

SPEAKER_03 (31:57):
And wear my salt hat.

SPEAKER_00 (31:59):
Yes, it looks great on you.
Thank you.
Um, but yeah, so we're justgonna partner.
Katie's gonna lead the onefitness instructor that has led
the events at my kids' school.
She's gonna lead the event.
She's awesome.
Um, and it's a 45-minutestrength class, body weight.

(32:19):
It will be we'll open, I'm gonnalead the prayer, which I am new
to.
So I did it for the walk, but itwas a smaller group.
This will be a larger group, andwe'll anchor the workout around
a Bible verse, Romans 12, 2.
And then the fitness event willbe to Christian music, and then
we'll have community time afterthe workout in that beautiful

(32:43):
setting.
I mean, you might have just soldme.

SPEAKER_03 (32:45):
You have to you might have just sold me also.
So um I've steered away from ita little bit.
And I know that when weconnected over coffee, um, I had
shared with you that uh I do alot of my like strength training
workouts to Lindsay Baumgren'sNourish Move Love, like some of
the workouts that she does.

(33:07):
And so Tuesdays are typicallythe day, typically, typically,
um, that I will do my strengthtraining.
Monday, Wednesday, Friday.
I like to walk and I am umgearing up to purchase a
weighted vest.
Gonna join that club here soon.
But Tuesdays and Thursdays areusually the day that I do
strength training.

(33:28):
And I'm like, how incrediblewould it be?
Because the event is on aTuesday, yes.
Right?
So I'm like, maybe I just likehold off having my like early
morning workout and just do thisas my workout, and I can get
some work done early in themorning before I come to the
event so that I can just, youknow, it's just a swap.

SPEAKER_00 (33:48):
I think that sounds like a great plan.

SPEAKER_03 (33:49):
It'll be purposeful open and it will, it will, and
it's right here anytime.
Exactly.
I don't really have an excuse.
I think you've already decided.
I think I have, yeah.
Now I just need to pot commit toit.
So okay.
I would um I'd love to for youto share, unless there was
anything else that you youwanted to expand on with like

(34:09):
some of the events that you do.

SPEAKER_00 (34:12):
I think that pretty much covered it.
Again, we're I'm just seeingwhere God leads me, and I I do
have some different types ofevents on the horizon that I'm
thinking about.
So yeah, that's right.

SPEAKER_03 (34:24):
That's right.
Okay, so share with thelisteners what exactly is your
role with SALT.
I mean, obviously, founderowner, yeah.
That's obvious, but above andbeyond that, how is it that
you're kind of moving thismission forward?

SPEAKER_00 (34:42):
So right now I'm providing just a platform for
fitness instructors who want toincorporate ministry into their
practice, as well as umproviding a platform for
somebody who maybe wants to openin prayer and be uncomfortable
and grow in that space as well.
Yeah.
So just, you know, connectingwith churches to do kind of the

(35:06):
legwork for them to make thisevent happen.
I will say I have an upcomingevent in February, and I think
God is calling me to lead thatfitness event.
So that's gonna be anotherstretching moment for me, but
I'm I'm here for it.
Well, let's be really frank.

SPEAKER_03 (35:25):
You're already stretching yourself.
Um, and I think that thelisteners are probably giggling
because they're like, wait asecond, you just started this
business this year, 2025.
And when your episode drops,it'll still be 2025.
So um, but like the fact thatthis is still all so relatively

(35:47):
new, and you're already doingall that you're doing, which is
absolutely incredible, and thenhave pronounced on a podcast
platform that ideally within thenext three years you'd like to
cut the cord.
Like you're doing a lot,girlfriend.
So pat yourself on the back andalso allow Grace to weave in

(36:08):
there as well.
But that's incredible too, thatyou're you're going, okay, so
I've I'm providing this platformfor other fitness instructors.
This is what the mission isbehind this.
But now you're going, I think Imight want to do this myself
too.
Exactly.
So on the instructor side,because that's something that

(36:29):
you're not all too familiarwith.
So can you speak to what only ifyou feel comfortable?

SPEAKER_01 (36:33):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 (36:34):
What that might look like?

SPEAKER_00 (36:36):
I'm still figuring that out.
I mean, I do strength trainingthree to four times a week, and
that's my passion now.
It's turn from running tostrength training.
I do still love running, but themotivation isn't there as much.

SPEAKER_03 (36:49):
I can't.
I can't, but I do love like Iknow that you mentioned that
your strategy around like themarketing and promotion for Salt
is like posting once a week, butyou do a pretty darn good job of
like incorporating uh maybedaily like what you're posting
on your stories, right?

SPEAKER_00 (37:09):
Yeah, and that's just really sharing other
people's content, but I thinkthat's still important, and I
have themes for each day on thestories, which helps guide me
and spend less time just kind ofrecreating the wheel every time.
Yeah, that's cool.

SPEAKER_03 (37:23):
Can you okay?
I know that I asked you thisquestion over here, but I think
that this is kind of a coolstrategy that you're speaking to
in regards to approachingmarketing via social media,
right?
Most people, most women areutilizing these platforms to
market their business, but I'venever, I don't think I've ever

(37:46):
heard of this sort of structurewith like every single day you
have a specific theme to whichyou focus on for posting.
So can you talk a little bitmore about that?

SPEAKER_00 (37:58):
I'm curious.
Yeah.
So on Mondays, I have never missa Monday.
I think Monday is so importantto set your week right.
Yeah.
And I feel like that day I get alot of feedback on that day the
most.

SPEAKER_03 (38:13):
Interesting.

SPEAKER_00 (38:14):
Yeah.
And so then I'm like, well, Igotta fill in the gaps here.
Like, let's do something forevery day.
So then Tuesday's truth-filledTuesday.
So then I usually share a Biblepost.
Uh, Wednesday is saltyWednesday, so then I'm actually
posting, not on my stories.
It's an actual post.
And it's a Bible verse with afaith and fitness challenge to

(38:35):
help stretch you a little bit.
And then Thursdays are uhThankful Thursdays, and just
posting something that I'mgrateful for or something about
gratitude and how it shifts yourperspective.
Um Fridays are uh Fuel YourHealth Friday.

(38:55):
So I just am passionate aboutwellness all around.
So I wanted to also incorporate,you know, healthy recipes or you
know, some whole I'm moreholistic, so I like hom holistic
remedies.
Yeah.
Um, that sort of thing.
And then like Saturday, Ibelieve, is slowdown Saturday.
So something not like justspending incorporating kids into

(39:18):
your movement and that sort ofthing.
And then Sundays I just don'tpost at all because I want you
to to give you a reason not toscroll anymore, you know?
Like we're yeah, you can be onInstagram for a long time.

SPEAKER_03 (39:30):
It's so true.
Interestingly enough, I havetaken the approach um in social
media that Sundays are my offday.
Like I do not go on socialmedia, um, and uh it's
purposeful.
And you know, maybesubconsciously it's a way for me
to go into the week as like areset because I know the like

(39:56):
the mental toll that it takes,um, even just like you know,
popping on there and posting andlike the energy exertion of just
the act of like, okay, this issomething that I've committed
to.
I'm gonna do this in order topromote um all the things that
I'm doing with my business, butI but I also need to just let

(40:19):
the brain take a break.
Exactly.
I forget where I'm gonna notablymention Deidro Wigman.
I think that we had spoken aboutthat um through like a
mastermind group, and it was shewas like, I've just decided that
that's something that my brainneeds.
Like, I need to just mentallytake a break from logging in to

(40:44):
the social media.
And um I'm like, I'm gonna trythat.
I'm gonna challenge myself, andI've just continued to do it.
Like Sundays are our days thatwe go to church and I reset in
the house for the rest of theweek, and so it's like, well,
why wouldn't I just allow thisto be the day that is like

(41:04):
quiet?

SPEAKER_00 (41:05):
Yeah, I love that.
I I need to work on that myself.
I will say part of the reasonwhy I created salt is I was like
mindlessly scrolling Instagram,and it's so much time wasted.
And I I probably spend as muchtime on there, but I'm spending

(41:27):
time creating and growing in myfaith and consuming that sort of
thing instead of just mindlessscrolling.
But doom scrolling, yeah.
I do love like no tech Sunday.
I mean, I have a long way to go,but that's no tech, like no
tech.

SPEAKER_03 (41:47):
No tech.
Yeah, ah, yeah.
Interesting.

SPEAKER_00 (41:52):
Yeah, I mean, it's a far-reaching goal, but it's have
have you ever heard of theHallow app?

SPEAKER_03 (41:59):
Did we talk about this?

SPEAKER_00 (42:01):
Okay, I don't think we talked about it, but I know
what you're talking about.

SPEAKER_03 (42:03):
So um I'm a big fan of the Halo app.
Um, that's H-A-L-L-O-W for allthe listeners.
Halo app.
I'll make sure to drop that as aresource too.
But I I truly love the platformitself because it's got, you
know, you can listen toChristian music if you want, you
can do uh like when enunciation,the tragedy at enunciation, like

(42:30):
the founder started a prayerlike thing on the Halo app for
that.

SPEAKER_00 (42:36):
Oh, that's amazing, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 (42:38):
And so, um, and the same thing with Charlie Kirk
too.
So, I mean, it's prettyincredible how what they're
doing through this.
Um sometimes they have try tofigure out the best way to put
it, but like um it's also sortof like a learning platform too,

(42:59):
like a tech learning platform.
So there was somebody who owns abusiness and it's all around
like digitally detoxing.
And so, like, one way todigitally detox is to actually
move away from a smartphone andget a flip phone.
Oh my gosh, yeah.
Like he talks about and likejust like hey, this is how I've

(43:21):
approached it, and he comes atit from the business aspect too.
He's like, when I went away fromthis is actually when my
business exploded.
Wow, that's so interesting.
Like his name, so I listened tothat whole thing, and that was
also almost at the same timetoo, I think it was earlier this

(43:42):
year, right around the same timethat Easter was approaching.
Okay, and um, I was like, okay,here are some simple ways for me
to effectively implement likedetoxing from some of the stuff
with my phone.
And then I was like, okay, I'mgonna try this on Sundays, and

(44:03):
it sort of stuck, it's sort ofjust stuck.

SPEAKER_00 (44:05):
That's awesome.
Good for you, anyways.

SPEAKER_03 (44:09):
Digital digital detox through the Halo app kind
of reminds me of what you'respeaking to with like having no
tech on Sundays.
Yeah, I'm definitely gonna lookinto this.

SPEAKER_00 (44:22):
Thanks for the recommendation.

SPEAKER_03 (44:24):
You're welcome.
Okay.
Um, I still want to have alittle bit better understanding
of like what has motherhood,let's weave in motherhood and
how um you have do you feel likethere's more intentional focus
being a mother, even though inthe thick and the throes of

(44:46):
starting a new business, whichrequires a lot of time and
energy from you?
Do you talk us through like whatthat has looked like for you?
I know that you mentioned thatyou incorporate the kids and
that's beneficial and helpful.
Yeah.
What else?

SPEAKER_00 (45:06):
I think it just, you know, I think how I set the tone
for the business has helped.
Like I said, the weekly posts, Iwant to do more, but I'm keeping
it at weekly.
Yeah.
Yeah.
So I don't spend, I'm notspending like I'm spending as

(45:27):
much or time as I want to on it,but I'm also like I said, every
day being very intentional withprioritizing our family first.
Um and then I also have afull-time job.
So I have to um make sure Idedicate a lot of time to that
as well.

SPEAKER_03 (45:48):
So, in regards to your corporate position, do you
feel like there's stuff thatyou've pulled from being in that
setting that rolls into how youapproach entrepreneurship?
And then um is the company awareof what you're doing, or are you
just like, I don't care?

SPEAKER_00 (46:09):
So the company recently learned about what I'm
doing through our, I think, soErica is not on Instagram, but
she is on LinkedIn and sheshared an upcoming event.
So then that led me to share mystory.
Um, I am thankful that mycompany sort of I wouldn't say
applaud, but like encouragesother people to pursue their

(46:33):
passions.
Um I do have a little bit morebalance than maybe other
companies, and I'm so gratefulfor that.
I haven't seen a lot of likelove or questions about it from
my coworkers, but um, I do knowthat from a company level that
the support is there.
I have pulled from my corporateexperience um just you know, my

(46:57):
marketing background into whatI'm doing for SALT.
Um, even leveraging Chat GBT tohelp, you know, um minimize the
time spent.
I mean, that has ChatGBT haspros and cons, right?
Yeah, for sure.
As a time saver, it's been veryhelpful for me in my corporate

(47:20):
job and also with SALT.

SPEAKER_03 (47:22):
Fascinating.
And so, you know, with Monicaand then Deidra as well, like
we're a part of a mastermindgroup together.
I think I might have talked alittle bit about this with you.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Mastermind that I had startedalmost a year ago to the date.
Um, but we have had these topicsof conversation about uh how to

(47:44):
approach Chat GPT.
Um and there's a mix ofindividuals that are on this
mastermind that come at it froma biblical standpoint, and then
some that are like my faith islike I have a faith, but I don't
know if it's necessarily fromlike a structured point, if that

(48:08):
makes sense.
I'm sort of trying to protectand preserve here a little bit
for these people, but um what isyour thought process for
approaching Chat GPT from aChristian aspect?

SPEAKER_00 (48:26):
I look at it as going back to what I stated
before, God doesn't want me tolike overextend myself in this
space, and I see it as aresource to help me not do that.
Um it's also led me to versesthat I may not have initially

(48:51):
thought about or sp like hasspent a significant amount of
time trying to think of theright verse.
And then it leads me to theBible to read more about it, and
so it's helped me um helpprovide a tool to guide me to
deepen my faith or stayconnected to God's word.

(49:11):
And I I love it, yeah.
So I see it more as a positivething, but I can see both sides,
yeah, for sure.

SPEAKER_03 (49:18):
There there's controversy around it for sure,
you know, and for me personally,I'm just like if I can minimize
time that I spend on thingsotherwise, like for example, I
used to like this is when I wasin mortgage, like, how was I
gonna respond to this particularclient?

(49:40):
Had I utilized something likeChatGPT when it was around and a
little bit more proficient now,um, it could have saved me so
much time and energy.

SPEAKER_00 (49:50):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 (49:51):
For sure.

SPEAKER_00 (49:52):
It's amazing.

SPEAKER_03 (49:53):
Like the ref I have a refined assistant, like refine
this message.
This is what I want toemphasize.
Can you give me a coupleexamples of how to refine this?
Yep.

SPEAKER_00 (50:04):
That's what I use it for a lot, like polish this up,
you know?
Yes.
It just jot down your thoughts,and then it's like having an
assistant, which has been nicefor you know, salt, and also in
my corporate job.
I mean, yeah, it can createflyers, you know?
It's like it's amazing.

SPEAKER_03 (50:20):
It's it's interesting.
I remember very early onsetstages of Chat GPT and the the
capabilities then versus now,and it's been a very short
period of time, yes, ismind-boggling.
Mind boggling.

(50:43):
I'm like, it wasn't able tocreate pictures or flyers at one
point, and now it's likepunching them out like it's um
candy out of a candy machine.

SPEAKER_00 (50:55):
Yeah.
One of the funny things that Ilearned through my corporate job
was you could submit a pictureof your dogs and turn them into
humans and give them apersonality.

SPEAKER_03 (51:07):
I am literally gonna do that.
You should.
I'm literally going to do that.
It's interesting.
I have to just share this realquick because it's too funny not
to share.
But Joe has been like made thevoices of what Ace and Deuce
would sound like.
These are for the listenersright now.
Like, if you do not know me, wehave two King Charles cavaliers,

(51:30):
Ace and Deuce.
And Ace is just like he's becomevery like old in his age, but he
and he kind of has that I don'tcare attitude anymore.
And the voice that Joe makes forhim is hilarious.
My god, like just hilarious.
And I'm like, I wonder what ChatGPT would punch out as like a as

(51:52):
a human being image for himspecifically.
You have to do it, they bothwould be hilarious.
It's highly entertaining.
We should do this before youleave, just so you can get a
girl out of it.
I gotta see it.
It's so funny.
Okay, my next question.
I think I've got some insightinto this, but what has, as you

(52:16):
have entered intoentrepreneurship again, you're
you're a baby in all of this,and it's so exciting to see your
eyes light up the way that theyare.
What has support, your villageof support, looked like for you?

SPEAKER_00 (52:31):
Yeah, I'm glad that you asked that because I feel
like I haven't like talked toomuch about the collaboration
piece and how important that hasbeen for SALT.
And so, like Faith and Gather,partnering with Monica, um, and
then the churches, uh, WestwoodChurch, and then a couple other
churches, like thosepartnerships have been so

(52:55):
impactful.
Um, and they have been mysupport system to help me
continue on.
Like, I also have in the back ofmy mind, like you can, I told
myself I'd do it for at least ayear.
Yeah.
And we're, you know, I thinkwe're like six months in, and I
have events into February.

SPEAKER_03 (53:16):
Um you get it, you're you're very quickly
approaching that year markwithout slowing down.

SPEAKER_00 (53:23):
Yeah.
So and I initially ordered, youknow, the hat that you're
wearing.
I ordered 40 of it for my 40thbirthday.
They're gone.
I have to do a reorder.
Yes.
And so that I mean, like, what?
Like, I I know it's at times Ifeel like it's very slow move me
moving, but then at other timesI'm like, wow, God has placed

(53:45):
all these people in my life tohelp support this business and
inspire me to keep going.
Um, my husband's been sosupportive.
Um, just all the collaborationpartners, they've been so
supportive.
I just and the feedback from theevents as well.
Like the first event that wehave, somebody came up to me and

(54:07):
was like, this is exactly what Iwas looking for, especially in
the Catholic setting.
It was yeah, you know, it's theydon't do a lot of those types of
activities, so it was kind of astretch to even bring it to that
community, but it it wasincredible.
And now we're doing itquarterly, so it's just yeah.

SPEAKER_03 (54:28):
Could you speak to like what your um the history of
your faith?

SPEAKER_00 (54:35):
Yeah.
So I was born and raisedCatholic.
I went to a Catholic school Kthrough seventh grade, and the
only reason why I left foreighth grade is just to meet
more people at a public schoolsetting.
Um, and that was my personaldecision.
My brothers and sisters didn'tdidn't do that.
Um and then I just kind of feltlike I didn't know very much

(55:01):
about my faith and was justgoing through the motions.
I went to church every Sunday,um, wasn't so good about it in
college.
Um and then yeah, and then evenduring COVID, you know, we would
watch on TV and really we'vebeen intentional with trying to

(55:23):
figure out not just, you know,we're gonna raise our kids in
the Catholic faith becausethat's you know how we were
raised.
We're trying to be intentionalabout choosing what is best for
our family.
Yeah.
So I call us, you know, churchhoppers because we're, you know,
parishioners at one church, butthen we I feel like we ask the
kids every weekend which churchthat they feel called to go to.

(55:47):
Interesting.
And so we bring them into thatdecision.
Um so I grew up with theCatholic background, but I'm
also trying to figure out how wewant to move our family forward
and in what faith foundation.
I also love with SALT, one of mymissions is to bring people out
of their churches and unite thecommunity as believers.

SPEAKER_03 (56:12):
Interesting.
And I love this approach too,because um if we continue to sit
in echo chambers, that's alsonot good for us.
No matter, no matter what, ifthe echo chamber is like, I
believe in Jesus Christ, He'sthe savior, I believe in God.
There's still little nuancesthat are happening, depending on

(56:35):
which you know, breakout fromCatholicism you are.
There's still like there'ssomething about getting outside
of the echo chamber and outsideof your bubble agreed to
experience.
And I mean, this is this isagain, I feel like we're kind of
coming back to a lot of thethings that we spoke to off-air,

(56:55):
but like the more division thatcontinues to happen in the
world, it it's that's not good,but the more that we can
continue to work together tounderstand in a uh a meaningful
way while also politelydisagreeing sometimes, it's
okay.
Yeah, it's okay.
It's okay that other people havedisagreeing points to you, and

(57:19):
this might this might be thecase even in like you know,
Catholics versus Protestantsversus, you know, whatever uh
what's the word I'm looking for?
Not avenue of um religion.
Do you understand what I mean?
Denomination.
Denomination.
Yeah, thank you.
I'm like, it's literally on thetip of my tongue.

(57:42):
So no matter what denominationyou are, there's still agree to
disagree stuff that happens evenin that setting, and we all have
the same common belief.
It's just wild to me.
But I love that you are sort ofon this mission like let's draw
you out of this environment andget you get all of us players

(58:02):
into an this environment overhere that's completely
different.

SPEAKER_00 (58:05):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 (58:06):
But understand this is our mission.
We believe in in the same thing,exactly.

SPEAKER_00 (58:13):
And let's move our bodies at the same time.
So I I have a mix of events, soI have them in the churches and
then outside the churches.
So I think both are important togrow the community within the
church, and then also like let'sunite as just believers.
And yeah, like you said, let'snot you know be divided like our
politics and let's learn fromeach other.

SPEAKER_03 (58:33):
How do you decide then or has this sort of
organically done its own thingfor you in terms of like how
you're deciding, like where andwith who?

SPEAKER_00 (58:44):
It's with whom, sorry, with whom it's been
completely organic.
It's God has led me to thesecollaborations and these events.
Um and yeah, it's beenincredible.
It's been a complete mix of bothin churches and then outside of
churches.

(59:04):
So I love it.

SPEAKER_03 (59:06):
It's it's really powerful what you're doing.
Thank you.
You're welcome.
We've talked a lot about a lotof the amazing positive things
that are continuing to happen.
And I I love your notablemention of like this is
happening organically, and Ithink that this is just a
testament to like putting yourbelief in God and the mission

(59:27):
that He's backing you on forthis.
There that also comes withvalleys too.
Like this is like this happensin the Bible.
We go through our valleys and weunderstand that we smile through
the happiness, but we all smile.
We also should be smilingthrough the suffering, too.

(59:50):
And so I'm curious if you haveany insight.
Um being so early on in your inyour entrepreneurial journey, if
you have experienced.
Experienced some struggles whereyou've had to sort of grin and
bear it.
And if you can speak to that.
And if not, that's okay.
But like, has there been anothermoment that you can speak to

(01:00:13):
that could be insightful andhelpful for another woman
listening right now?

SPEAKER_00 (01:00:18):
Yes.
Since it's so early on, Ihaven't had um too many of those
moments.
But I will say this wholeprocess has been very
uncomfortable.
And I'm a people pleaser, andI've like growing up, I place
high value on what other peoplethink of me.
Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 (01:00:38):
What's been uncomfortable about it?

SPEAKER_00 (01:00:40):
Just well, with my Catholic Catholic upbringing,
we're very private in our faithand prayer life.
So it's been uncomfortable to bemore vocal in that space.
Um also just with my faith.
I mean, that was just not how Iwas, you know, a year, year and

(01:01:01):
a half ago.

SPEAKER_03 (01:01:02):
Um okay, let's dive into this.
Okay.
I want you to, I want to massagemore out of you because I think
that there's really a lot moreto this.

SPEAKER_01 (01:01:11):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 (01:01:12):
Um, and uh selfishly, I want to I want to
know how you're working throughit too, because this I think I'm
I'm beginning to inch closerinto this, like not being afraid
to speak out to what I believe,yeah.
Right.
And firmly standing in that andnot allowing uh the world to

(01:01:38):
push me over.
Can you hear my stomachgrowling?

SPEAKER_00 (01:01:44):
It's okay.

SPEAKER_03 (01:01:45):
It's okay.
I have I have had that happen,and my stomach is literally
almost getting to that point,too.
So you're in good company.
Um, but no, I don't think thatthe microphone probably picked
it up.
The listeners are like gonna belistening for it.
She's hungry.
Yeah, it's okay.
I mean, we're well, it's stillthe morning, so tell me a little

(01:02:10):
bit more though, about um howyou've worked through that.
And if you're willing to speakto like maybe a specific
circumstance, or if there hasbeen a few circumstances where
it's been like, oh, I wasn'texpecting that, but this is how

(01:02:31):
I moved through it.

SPEAKER_00 (01:02:33):
Yeah, so I just I mean, I have to move through it
through prayer.
Like God has called me to thisspace, and it's almost like I
like I am working for God, so Ican't let other people's
opinions weigh me down.
And just this quote I alwaysthink of God doesn't call the

(01:02:56):
qualified, he qualifies thecalled.
And so I just try to rememberthat and keep that in the back
of my mind.
Um, and I will say, like, it'syou know, some of my
friendships, I've never talkedabout my faith life.
And so to bring that to theforefront, that's uncomfortable.
I mean, that's been one of thehard things as well.

SPEAKER_03 (01:03:18):
Um Do you, I might be pushing the envelope a little
too much here, but do you havefriendships where it's very
evident that faith is notimportant to them or they just
aren't religious?

SPEAKER_00 (01:03:33):
Most of my friendships, no, but they are
not vocal or active in theirfaith life.
Um, so yeah, it just at timesfeels uncomfortable, but I know
I'm doing what I'm supposed todo, but it's just not always

(01:03:54):
easy.
But I hope I'm helping inspirethem at the same time.
I love that.
That was a nice little messagein a call.

SPEAKER_03 (01:04:03):
But everything beautiful happens outside of our
comfort zones too, which is socliche, and I am sure I can
literally hear the eye rolls.
But it's true.
It is true.
I mean, that is where the growthhappens, is when we decide that
we are ready to getuncomfortable.
And I'm almost speaking tomyself through talking about

(01:04:24):
this out loud with you.
So thank you for sharing how youhave bravely moved through that
and still continued on yourmission because you understand
what your calling is.

SPEAKER_00 (01:04:35):
Yes.
And I was missing that growthpiece in my corporate life.
Like, it's like I'm just gonnacreate my own thing, and God has
called me to this space, andit's gonna be very
uncomfortable.
I mean, fitness has always beena passion of mine.
Yeah.
Um, but integrating the faithcomponent has been stretching

(01:04:58):
for sure.
But it's in the best way.
Yeah.
It, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 (01:05:04):
So was there moments in time too, as you were either
sitting in church or um readingthrough your Bible where you had
these like aha moments of likediscovery of verses that sort of
tied in with fitness?

SPEAKER_00 (01:05:19):
Um, not necessarily.
I mean, honoring your body as atemple of the Holy Spirit, you
know, is one that comes to mind,but that wasn't one that was
necessarily forefront for me.
Yeah.
When I was developing the brand,it was just the salt and
spreading the light.
And just I know how muchmovement is important in

(01:05:41):
honoring our God-given bodies.
And yeah, I just, and you knowwhat?
Thinking back, I recentlythought about this.
Are you a Peloton fan?

SPEAKER_03 (01:05:53):
I'd I we've got like a hand-me-down, passed down um
treadmill downstairs, notequipped for Peloton.
Um, but I know it's like acraze.
Like I've had other individualson the podcast that are

(01:06:14):
promoters of Peloton.
And so is there a specificinstructor that you're gonna
speak to?

SPEAKER_00 (01:06:20):
Yeah, so I was thinking back recently, and
Allie Love did Sundays withLove, and she did a ride that
was like centered around likeself-improvement or something
like that.
So that's kind of like I thinkwhat sparked this whole thing.
Interesting.
I know, like I'm not for sure,but like it's like, all right, I
think that maybe had a littlebit of an impact of like what I

(01:06:43):
wanted to do here.

SPEAKER_03 (01:06:44):
Interestingly enough, and um it'll be it'll be
fun to connect, um, whether it'son the 30th of this month or
it's you know further down theroad for you to look back and be
able to connect the dots becauseit will happen, and you'll start
to see these patterns of theseeds that God has dropped.

(01:07:06):
And you're like, oh yeah, that Ican't believe I completely
walked over that seed.
Yeah.
And didn't water it.
But here we are now, and I'mdeciding that looking backwards,
this is how and why God has ledme to where everything is at now

(01:07:26):
and where he's leading youmoving forward as well.
It's so, it's so fun.
What's particularly fun too iswhen I have women on who have
been operating their businessesfor five years, 10 years, 15
years, and they can do that.

(01:07:47):
They go, oh yeah, I knowexactly.
Like I look back and go, wow, Ihad this like really great
opportunity at this particularmoment and passed it up.
But there was this other otheropportunity, knowing I had
missed this one back here, yeah,to go, okay.

(01:08:09):
If it wasn't obvious then thatGod was inspiring me, it is it
is glaringly obvious now.

SPEAKER_00 (01:08:18):
Yep, exactly.

SPEAKER_03 (01:08:20):
So it's really fun to be able to do that, and um,
you'll find yourself, becausethis has happened to me, in
these very interesting moments,like very random too, where all
of a sudden you're like, Oh mygosh.
And I've had my husband be like,What?
And I'm like, nothing.
And he's like, it's nevernothing with you.

(01:08:40):
And I can't be like, oh, I wasjust thinking about like this
moment in time five years ago,you know?

SPEAKER_00 (01:08:48):
Like, yeah, it's really wild.
It is to think that it's exactlywhat happened to me.
I'm like, what?
How did I not think of thisbefore?
Subconsciously, all of thesedifferent things, right?
So even the likeself-improvement podcasts.
I listen to a lot of those.
Yeah.
Um, and since I've grown in myfaith, there are some that I'm

(01:09:08):
like, I'm not listening to themanymore.
They're focused on theirthemselves, and it's like God is
in control.
I listen to people who honor Godand recognize him in in their
life.
Yeah.
Um, but yeah, that hasdefinitely led me down this path
as well.
Like Ed Milet.
I'm a big one.
I was just gonna ask, like, whoare you listening to right now,

(01:09:31):
Jess?
Ed?
Yep.
And listen to your podcast aswell.
I mean, it's very inspiring tosee hear other um moms and
entrepreneurs that have you gonedown this path and the struggles
that they've had faced and howthey've grown.
And yeah, it's just really whatyou're doing is amazing, and God
is working through you, and it'svery evident.

SPEAKER_03 (01:09:52):
Yeah, thank you.
I just pray that he continues towork through me for courage and
strength and bravery.
So it's I realize that some likesometimes I am like, How can I
do this?
versus going, what is Godcompelling me to do and work
through him?
So kind of getting away from theme and the I.

SPEAKER_02 (01:10:15):
Yep.

SPEAKER_03 (01:10:15):
And instead going, How am I being inspired by God
and leading by prayer throughall of this?
So I love that.
Yeah, thank you.
Look at us just complimentingone another for our missions.
So I I am um I literally hadthis happens frequently.

(01:10:36):
I had a question and it was likeit's gone.
I completely forgot.
I think though, like this isprobably one of my shorter
episodes, but we've done such afantastic job of covering all of
the bases pretty efficiently andeffectively.
Yeah.
So I think we can start to landthe plane, okay, so to speak.

(01:10:56):
You may have heard me say thatas well.
So I'm I am curious, knowing allthat you know in this current
moment, again, a very shortperiod of time, but knowing all
that you know now, looking back,what's a piece of advice you'd
give a younger version ofyourself?
Six or seven months youngerversion of yourself.

SPEAKER_00 (01:11:19):
Yeah, I would say do what's uncomfortable.
That's where you're gonna grow.
Um, don't let other people'sopinions weigh you down.
I love it.
Yeah, I think that has you knowstopped me in my younger life.
And now I'm recognizing theimportance of it and just
thanking God that He has calledme to grow.

(01:11:42):
Hmm.
So good.

SPEAKER_03 (01:11:45):
What's a piece of advice you would give another
woman listening right now that'sin the same sort of trenches
that you're in?

SPEAKER_00 (01:11:57):
Yeah, so I would say, let's say they're working
in the corporate environment,not really getting anywhere, not
feeling feeling fulfilled,create your own opportunity.
That's where you're gonna grow,and that's what's gonna be
fulfilling.
You can align your passions withit.
And um, and also the other pieceof advice for those who are kind

(01:12:20):
of like lost in their faithlife, um just come to an assault
event, honestly, and grow yourfaith, move with others.
I don't want it to be in in Iwant it to be a welcoming space
for people to do that.
You know, it's hard to walk intoa new church or you know, just

(01:12:43):
try to find what works for you.
And I feel like a lot of peopleback down when they are
presented that opportunitybecause they're just
intimidated.

SPEAKER_03 (01:12:53):
Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 (01:12:53):
And I want this to be a welcoming space um and for
people to grow and unite asbelievers.

SPEAKER_03 (01:13:01):
So that's so amazing.
Would you say, in just doing areflection backwards, that there
was that moment in time whereyou lost a hue of yourself, and
in taking this leap intostarting salt, is one way of you

(01:13:23):
regaining that reclaiming andre-imaging what your identity
looks like?

SPEAKER_00 (01:13:30):
Yeah, I would say I lost my hue earlier this year,
like before I turned 40.
I just kind of like I don't wantto say it's a midlife crisis,
but something of the sort.
Like, who are the people that Iwant to be around?

(01:13:50):
Um, and who, like, who are mytrue friends?
Like, why what is God calling meto do here?
Because He calls each one of us.
We're made uniquely.
We all have our own talents, andI just want to like encourage
other people.
I want to share my story to helpencourage other people to pursue

(01:14:14):
to pursue their passions and uhjust bring God's light into this
world.
That's so good.

SPEAKER_03 (01:14:24):
I love it, Jess.
What I would love to hear whowould be a good connection for
you.

SPEAKER_00 (01:14:33):
I would say any uh like faith-based fitness
instructors, I would love to,you know, work with more um and
provide different types offitness events to continue to do
that.
Um and also, you know, long-termgoal would be to spread salt

(01:14:54):
across the US.

SPEAKER_03 (01:14:55):
Oh my gosh.
I literally was just thinking,like, okay, well, what happens
if there's somebody who I knowthat's not here locally?
Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 (01:15:05):
I would love to like have pop-up events across the
US.
That would be amazing.
Think about what that opens up.
Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 (01:15:14):
I mean, it it truly in like how you view your
business and what differentapproaches you might have to
take.
So it's it's gonna be reallyinteresting in a year, a year
from now, when I touch base withyou on how everything has gone
since your episode dropped.
Yeah, what's new, what'schanged, it's gonna be really

(01:15:38):
exciting.
And I I know deep in my soulthat like this is something
that's gonna continue movingforward in such a positive way
because this is what our worldneeds right now.
Agreed, truly, truly.
And um, you know, ironically, Ijust remembered what this other
question was.

(01:15:58):
So you spoke to the sort of thisaspect of well-roundedness,
right?
In the wellness area, like whathas that looked like for you,
and how can you speak from yourperspective to other people,
even if it's just in the senseof like the importance of moving

(01:16:18):
your body and why salt ties intothat too.

SPEAKER_00 (01:16:25):
Yeah, so I mean, I'm all about the small changes and
how they compound, they have acompounding effect, and so you
know, it could be like a10-minute walk every day.
It's just moving your body, likeengages your mind, and yeah,
it's so important.
I feel like God made us forcommunity.

(01:16:47):
So that's an also an importantaspect of salt in their events,
and so salt events like providean opportunity to do all three,
and I would just encouragesomeone listening who have who
hasn't been to an event yet totry it out, yeah.
And you know, start with smallchanges, and that will be

(01:17:11):
impactful in your wellness lifeand all and in all areas of your
life.
It's really beautiful.
How can our listeners getconnected to you?
Um, my website.
So I have uh a websitewww.sweatandliftruth.com.
I'm also on Instagram.

(01:17:32):
Um Sweat and Live Truth is thehandle.
And yeah, that's how they canconnect with me.

SPEAKER_03 (01:17:38):
I will be sure to drop all of that information
into the show notes so ourlisteners can get connected.
Um, I can't wait to be a part ofthe event on the 30th.
I am proclaiming it.
I love it.
I'm so excited to have you.
The ticket is purchased beforethe end of the day today.
I'm so grateful.
I love seeing your face.

(01:17:59):
Oh, by the way.
It's just thank you, Kelly.
It is you're living out yourtruth, and it's so fun to see
how you're just making waves inthis and the people who you're
continuing to get connected to,where it's it's evident like you
and Erica.
Yeah, that's a match made inheaven.

(01:18:19):
Yes, I can't wait to park itwith her.
Truly.
And so thank you for all thatyou're doing.
Thank you for coming on andsharing your wisdom of how
you're approachingentrepreneurship as as it
pertains to the startupcomponent of it.
It's really insightful and superhelpful.
So thank you.

SPEAKER_00 (01:18:40):
Yes, and thank you for the opportunity and
continuing to lift other moms upin this space.
And I'm so grateful for you,Kelly.

SPEAKER_03 (01:18:48):
You're so welcome.
Thanks.
I hope you have a great day.
You too.
Thank you.
Bye.
Thanks for listening.
And if you enjoyed this episodeand know of any inspiring mamas
who are powerhouseentrepreneurs, please help
connect them with myself and theshow.
It would mean so much if youwould help spread this message,
mission, and vision for otherMompreneurs.

(01:19:08):
It takes 30 seconds to rate andreview, then share this episode
with your friends.
Until the next episode, cheersto reclaiming your hue.

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Ep. 74 with Jessica Swenson | Founder, SALT

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.css-14f5ked{margin:0;word-break:break-word;display:-webkit-box;-webkit-box-orient:vertical;box-orient:vertical;-webkit-line-clamp:2;overflow:hidden;}Ep. 74 with Jessica Swenson | Founder, SALT